Bio:

In the autumn of 1082, the greatest storm in living memory pummeled the Dwimmer Vale for three days. Howling winds, driving rain, thunder and lightning like nothing even the old graybeards could remember. Once the storm passed, the people of the Duchy of Coryn emerged into the sunlight to survey the damage and begin rebuilding. But for one man, the Baron Edmund Kalkin, the storm’s damage would never be repaired – his wife, the Lady Gabriela, had died during the storm’s peak giving birth to the Baron’s third son, Samael.

As Samael grew up in the Castle Kalkin, his father and brothers were always cold and distant to him. Perhaps it was the memory of his mother’s death that caused it, but the frequent unusual happenings around Samael could not have helped the superstitious Baron love him any more. When Samael grew excited or angry, shutters would bang open and closed, winds would rush through the castle halls extinguishing lamps and candles, and fires would flare up unnaturally.

When Samael reached 10 years of age, his father decided he should be given to a life of scholarly pursuits. He was packed off to Sunfire Abbey in the town of Drakesbury. Samael took to life at school well; his obvious wealth, charm and force of personality let him quickly make friends and followers among the other students. However, while he fit in well socially, he didn’t have much use for the alleged reason for being at school – Samael showed no interest whatsoever in history, religion, the natural world, or any of the other scholarly subjects taught at the Abbey. Rather than studying such boring subjects, he would persuade or coerce other students to do his writing and work, and rely on natural charm to keep the teachers content.

The only subject that interested Samael was one that the Abbey did not teach – the Arcane. His father the Baron would not admit what was plainly obvious – Samael’s natural talent with arcane energies – and refused Samael the right to enroll in the Conlegium Arcanum. Samael was able to convince friends who had moved from the Abbey to the Conlegium to provide him with books, though, and studied the arcane arts on his own.

Upon reaching the age of maturity, Samael dropped out of the seminary school at Sunfire Abbey and took up residence in his family’s townhouse in Drakesbury. He continued to acquire smuggled books from the Conlegium, and studied and practiced his arts; he also built his reputation as a socialite, throwing lavish parties at the Kalkin townhouse, running up massive bar tabs, and generally embarrassing his father the Baron to no end.

The Baron finally reached the end of his patience, and traveled to Drakesbury to confront Samael about his lifestyle and expenses. While waiting for Samael to return to the townhouse, the Baron found Samael’s arcane library and laboratory; this new evidence of Samael’s defiance was the last straw. When Samael returned, the Baron turned him out of the townhouse with nothing, and cut off access to the family properties and funds.